Apparatus for removing water from paper webs



Aug. 7, 1945. m c. w. MAYER 2,381,756

APPARATUS FOR REMOVING WATER FROM PAPER WEBS 2 Sheets-Sheet Filed April 3, 1941 [N V EN TOR Cfl/IRAES M NA K R ATTO EY' c. w. MAYER Aug. 7, 1945.

APPARATUS FCSR REMOVING WATER FROM .PAPER WEBS 2 Sheets-Shee t 2 Filed April 3, '1941 M rm E M W IV QQA MN m 6 v a W gnu M id-h. mw 7. Q g qm h o o QM Q0 b 3 m 07m mm Q .1 MN ou Q/ Patented Aug. 7, 1945 APPARATUS FOR 2,381,766 REMOVING WATER FROM 7 PAPER WEBS Charles W. Mayer, Rochester, N. Y.; Katherine B. Mayer executrix of said Charles W. Mayan-deceased Application'April 3, 1941, Serial No. 386,664

3 Claims.

This invention relates-t the manufacture of waxed paper and especially to the removal of'the cooling water from the wax paper after the wax coating has been hardened thereby and the principal object of the invention is to provide a novel means for removing viding the paperwlth mg. a

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel means for efiiciently removing the cooling water without subjecting the web material to undu'e strain andfriction.

- A further object of this invention is to provide a novel means foreificiently removing the cooling water with'the aid of a series of novel blotting operations which provide the coated paper with a completely dry, highly finished surface.

' A still further object of this invention is to a highly finished wax coatsubject the coatedpaper with a combined squeez-' ing and blotting action for the efficient removal of the water which is carried off from the hardening bath after the coating has been chilled therein.

All these and other objects and attendant advantages of the invention will become more readily apparent from the detailed description thereof which follows, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is an elevation of one side of the water dipping and water removing apparatus as it appears in conjunction with a coating machine.

. Figure 2 is a diagrammatic'view which illustratesthe water dipping and water removing operation of the apparatus.

Figure 3 is a detail collectors which are used in carrying off the water after it is removed from the paper.

Figure 4 is an end elevation of a portion of the apparatus illustrating the driving mechanism thereof.

Figure 5 is an enlarged detail of one end of one of the scraper blade and ing.

Figure 6 is an enlarged detail perspective view of the other endof one of the blotting rolls and its mounting.

Figure 7 is a detail side elevation'ofone end of the immersion roller of the apparatus.

Figure 8 is an end elevation thereof.

Figure 9 is an enlarged side elevation of the middle portion of the immersion roller.

Figure 10 is an enlarged detail side elevation of one of the water collectors used in draining the water taken from the. blottingrolls.

perspective view blotting rolls, its baffle plate and their mountthe cooling water and proview of one of the water ting rolls I3, l3 and then over a similar series The apparatus, forming the subject matter of my present invention, is adapted for use with any kind of Wax coating machine and reference numetal I in Figure 1 indicates any form of coating mechanism and not only the one which has the outline shown. The paper web 2 which leaves the coating machine is properly coated on either one or both sides in the desired manner before it is submerged inthe cooling tank 3 to rapidly chill the wax coating and harden it. The tank contains cooling water which is kept at the proper cooling temperature by suitable refrigeration, as for example, the refrigerating coils 4, 4 provided in the bottom of the tank. T0 submerge the paper web and hold it submerged, an immersion roller 5 is used.' This roller is pivotally supported on a suitable conical bearing provided on the arms 6, 6 at each end which are mounted to swingin and out of the tank as illustrated in dotted lines in Figure 2. The pivot shaft 1 which supports the arms above the tankcarries a gear 8 which meshes with a pinion 9 so that the rotation of the latter by means of the crank It) causes the arms 5, 6 and with it the immersing roller 5 to swing either in or out of the tank 3.

Beforethe coated paper is submerged, the begining of the paper' web, either coated or uncoated, is passed under the submerging roller while it is held in an elevated position above the tank 3 and is directly threaded thru between the two squeeze rolls H and I2. From the latter the web is alternately passed over one series of blotof blotting rolls I 4, l4 onto the rewind shaft IS.

The sdueez roll I2, the blotting rolls l3; l3 and l4, M, as well as the rewind shaft I5, are all driven to positively pull the paper web at a uniform linear speed thru the apparatus to form the roll IS on the shaft 15. For this purpose the drive pulley I! is operated from a suitable power source to rotate the drive shaft l8. A pulley l9, carried by this shaft, drives the pulley by means of the belt 2| so as to rotate the squeeze roller 12.

The shaft 22 of each of the blotting rolls l3 and I4 is journaled at each end in a separate bearing block 23 and these bearing blocks are so constructed that they may be fastened together and arranged one on top of the other to provide upright -columns for the support of the shafts of as many of the blotting rolls as are found necessary for the eflicient removal of the water from the coated paper web in the manner hereinafter described.

The endless belt 25 which consecutively travels over each of the pulleys 26 carried by the shafts 22 of the blotting rolls rotates the blotting rolls and feeds the web at a uniform linear speed in contact therewith and, in order to provide sufficient traction for the movement of the belt 25, the shafts 22 of three of the rolls M are positively rotated by suitable sprockets from the endless sprocket chain 21 which in turn is driven by the sprocket 28 mounted on the drive shaft l'8. A tightening pulley 29 carried by the swinging arm 30 and operated by and worm 32 contacts the ening sprocket 33 carried by the swinging arm 34, which is operated by the worm gear segment 35 and worm 36, meshes with the sprocket chain 21 to keep it under proper driving tension.

The rewind shaft I is journaled in bearings in front of the machine for the rotation by the pulley 31 and the latter is driven by the belt 39 from the pulley 40 on the drive shaft l8.

After the paper web is passed over the rolls of the apparatus and suitably held for its wind up on the rewind shaft, the driving mechanism above'described is started to cause th positively driven rolls and the driving shaft to draw the paper from the waxing machine. At the same t me the immersion roller 5 is operated to swing into the tank and forces the paper web which travels under it into the cooling water in the tank as illustrated diagrammatically in Figure 2.

In this way the coated web, after it leaves the coating machine, is plunged into cold water at a predetermined temperature in order to quickly chill and harden the wax coating of the paper web; As illustrated in Figures '7 and 9, the surface of the immersion roller is threaded with a preferably rounded thread, one half 'of the roller being provided with a left hand thread and the other half with a right hand thread. This provides for cooling water to constantly pass thru between the threads of the roller and eliminates the formation of a water film between the roller and the paper web that would hold the roller completely separated from thus prevent the paper web from rotating the roller 5 by eliminating frictional contact between them. The action ofthe right and left hand thread keeps the paper web from creeping to either one side or the other of therollers.

The quick chilling of the coated surfaces of the paper web and the elimination of substantially all frictional contact and the immersion roller provides the paper with a highly finished surface which it retains after the cooling water, which adheres-to the surface of the paper web, is removed therefrom.

This is done by first passing the paper web between the pair of rubber squeeze rolls II and I2 and subjecting it to a squeezing action which removes part of the water from both surfaces of the paper web and then passing the paper web consecutively over a series of blotting rolls l3 and 14 which are arranged so that first one side and then the other of the Web is alternately contacted by the rolls and wound around substantially onehalf of their diameter.

For this purpose the squeeze roll H is rotatably suspended between a pair of bell cranks 60 and the free ends of these bell cranks contact suitable eccentrics 6| which are rotatable by the crank 62. By means of this crank the bell crank levers are thus operated to move the squeeze roll I! either toward or away from the squeeze roll [2 to provide the desired pressure with which the the worm gear segment 3| endless belt 25 to hold I the belt under proper driving tension. A tightthe paper web and between paper web blade 4| face of the roller substantially tangential thereto.

paper web is compressed between the rolls in order to squeeze part of the water from the surface of the paper web as it leaves the tank 3.

Th blotting rolls have a smooth surface and their contact with the surface of the wax coated paper causes some.of the water adhering to the surfaceof the paper to be transferred from the paper to the surface of the roller while both the paper and the roller travel at substantially the same linear speed in contact with each other. The water transferred to the surface of the roller is immediately taken off the roller by a scraper which is yieldingly held against the sur- Each scraper blade is supported by an angle iron 42 and with it forms a trough 43 in which the water scraped from the roller is adapted to collect for drainage at one end thereof into the funnel 44 and drain pipe 45 back into the tank 3.

A substantially vertically arranged splash shield MA is carried by the angle iron 42 opposite to the scraper. blade; so that water splashing over the scraper blade is also directed into the trough 43 for drainage therefrom. The angle irons are provided ateach end with a pivot stud 46 with which the scraper assembly is journaled in the bearing blocks of the uprights.

As illustrated in Figure 2, each of the blotting rolls- I3 and I4 is contacted by a scraper so that as each roller operates to transfer or blot an additional amountwof water from the coated paper web all of the water carried off by the paper web is finally drained back into the: tank so that the web leaves the last of the blottingrolls perfectly dry-ready to be wound up on the rewind shaft l5. 1 I

The scrapers of each group of blotting rolls l3 and M are operated collectively by means of the bell crank levers 41 and 48 respectively. Each of these levers is hingedly connected to the bottom of a verticallymoving rod 49 which carries at spaced points a pair of pins 50, 50 for the operation of each of the scraper blades. One of the pins 5|] of each pair carries an antifriction roller 52. and the pin and roller are so-arranged that the end of each arm 53, which is adjustably carried by the pivot studs 46, slidably engages between them. Movement of the scrapers into or out of contact with the blotting rolls is thus secured by the movement of. the bell crank levers and 4B andthe scrapers may be tensioned against the rolls by exerting the desired tension on the bell crank levers and' locking them in place at that tension by 'means of the locking bolts 54 which pass-thu a slot 55 in the levers and are operated to lock or release'its lever bymeans ofa crank;56.' Thearms 53 are adjusted on the pivot studs 46 so that the scrapers are uniformly tensioned'iagainst the rolls by the levers 41 and 48.

Operationof the water dip machine is thus as follows: 1 3

After the paper web is properly coated by the coating machine, it is fed at its normal rate of linear speed into the cooling water where it is quickly chilled and hardened. In its passage thru the tank, the web is held submeged by the immersion roller .5. On leaving the tank the paper web passes thru between the rubber squeeze rolls I I and I2 tohave most of :the water. adhering to the surfaces of the paper web squeezed from it so that itmay drip back into the tank. From the squeeze rolls the paper web is directed to the blotting rolls l3 and I4 so as to alternately contact these rolls first with one side and then with the other to cause the water still adhering to the surfaces of the coated paper web to be transferred to the surface of the rolls. This transfer or blotting action of the blotting rolls continues until all of the water is taken from the paper. As above described, the rolls are journaled in separate bearing blocks and any number of them may be fastened together for the support of the number of blotting rolls necessary to completely dry the paper web by their blotting action before the paper web is wound up on the receiving shaft. v

I claim:

1. An apparatus for removing water from the webs of paper or the like comprising a pair of upright-s, a plurality of rolls'journaled between said uprights in staggered relationship to have the web traveling over the rolls alternately contact consecutive rolls with its opposite sides, scraper rods pivotally supported between said uprights and arranged opposite each of said rolls,

scrapers on said scraper rods, and means operating said scraper rods to yieldingly hold said scrapers substantially tangentially in contact with said rolls spaced from the contacting portions of the web and the rolls.

2. An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 in which each of said uprights is made up of a plurality of individual bearing blocks supported one on top of the other adapted to provide uprights of different heights for correspondingly varying numbers of rolls.

3; An apparatus rod, means for operating said sliding rod to simultaneously and uniformly operate said scrapers, and means for locking said operating means to provide constant engagement of said scrapers with the surfaces of said rolls.

, CHARLES W. MAYER. 

